1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a multi-use floor tool and, more particularly, to a vacuum nozzle and attachments which can be utilized for both wet and dry operation.
2. Description of the Related Art
With the advent of the wet/dry vacuum, consumers became able to clean a multitude of areas of their home or business, and multiple types of both wet and dry debris by using only one device. This technology thus allowed consumers to clean both wet and dry areas, without having to purchase separate machines. However, in most wet/dry cleaning operations, in order for an operator to transfer from wet to dry operation of a vacuum, the operator had to switch nozzles, for example, from a bristle-brush nozzle to a squeegee nozzle, in order to get the most effective cleaning results. This resulted in a numerous amount of parts which had to be manufactured, bought and stored.
For dry operation, many wet/dry vac nozzles have a bristle strip positioned just behind the brush nozzle's inlet. This results in the bristle only being effective in sweeping debris during the forward cleaning stroke, rather than the backward stroke as well. Other types of brush nozzles had only a formed brush surrounding the bottom portion of the nozzle. In many cases, this brush was trimmed only on one side, which allowed the brush to effectively pick up debris only when moved in one direction. Other brush nozzles had reliefs cut around the perimeter of the brush which allowed for debris pickup in both sweeping directions, but these designs did not redirect full air flow to the side of the brush accumulating debris.
Therefore, there is a need for a single nozzle assembly that can be effectively used during both wet and dry operation and that can be easily transferred between wet and dry operational modes. There is also a need for a vacuum brush nozzle, in dry operation, which can effectively pick up debris during both the forward and backward strokes, by redirecting the full air flow of the nozzle to the particular side of the brush accumulating debris at the time.